Mission: Kill Mikan Sakura
by RiaLize07
Summary: He was sent on a mission to kill her, but one look in the photo in her file, and he finds himself mystically drawn to her. Time is running, and the deadline draws close, but could he do it, or would he fall for her instead?  NxM
1. Cookies

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Gakuen Alice. :)

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_This is the story I've always wanted to write, but somehow, never gotten around to. I've been thinking about it for a year in different kinds of scenarios, but basically the same main plot. I hope y'all enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writing it. ^_^_

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**PART 1**

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Chapter 1: COOKIES

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"Now, let's go through the plan one more time."

"No need, I've read it," I snapped, irritated. "You find her dangerous because of her abilities that can render yours useless, and you want her dead. But I refuse. End of story." I pointed towards the door, but my God, the woman was relentless.

"There must be something that can let you change your mind."

"No." I shut the folder Luna Koizumi handed me and she gave a pout. I rolled my eyes and turned my seat away from her. It was a sickly smile. Unpleasant. Many people seemed to be a victim of it, but I wasn't it.

"I won't stop. I'll ask Persona about this. You'll see."

"You will _not_ ask Persona to let me handle that mission. I won't_ murder_," I said resolutely. I sounded calm, but if need be, I'd threaten her.

She laid a hand on her hip. "You're over-thinking it, Natsume. All you have to do is burn her to a crisp."

I was ruthless to my enemies, but I wouldn't kill_ this_ girl. And I had no bloody idea why.

I snatched the file folder from Luna and threw it open to the centre of the desk.

"_Look at her_," I gestured. "You want me to _kill_ her?" I said with incredulity.

"She's seventeen." The same age as me. "A _brunette_. She wears_ pink_, probably dreams of floating on_ rainbows _too," I said, partly disgusted. She was clueless, innocent, and as cheerfully ignorant to the violence of the world as a woman should be.

"Exactly why she's so dangerous. Could be an outer shell she shows to the rest of the world. When she discovers the extent of her abilities even more, we will eventually have to destroy her. And… rumor has it, she has the Stealing Alice."

I glared at her. It was enough for her to flinch and look away. I folded my arms across my chest. "But right now she lives in rainbows and pink. I see no point in, as you say, _destroying_ her."

"The possibilities, Natsume. Over time, she'll become the one to destroy us first."

"I said _no._"

She gave a little jerk in surprise from my heavy tone, and stepped back. I handed her the folder once more, and she quickly made her way out of the room.

Just when she left, Ruka entered.

"I have no idea how you do it, but one day women are all over you, the next, they're running for their lives. It's an endless cycle," he said with a grin. "So," he said, giving me a can of coke. "What did you do this time?"

I rubbed my temples and replied, "I refused her offer to kill a Nullifier."

"You realise-"

"Yeah. She'll run to Persona again, and I'll end up doing it. Fuck."

Ruka shook his head, and looked at me with what looked like sympathy. Couldn't blame him. I even felt sorry for myself. "You wanna swap? I gotta take care of some Alice users in China. Said they were planting some bombs."

I raised a brow. "Think he'd let me?"

"Nah. You're right." He clapped a hand on my shoulder. "You don't have to kill her if you don't want to. We can still escape all this."

Comforting words, but not solutions, merely extended ways of getting to the same result. Eventually.

"No. I'm not running away."

I could hear the familiar clacking of heels before she spoke not long after. I braced myself for her words, but it did not do a thing to lessen my frustration.

"Natsume," Luna called through the door. "Guess who's calling for you."

Damn.

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I didn't bother reading through the file one more time. After all, I'd already read it and I was deeply against it that I'd swear I'd be burning it once the mission was over. But then, damned morals didn't exist in a mission to kill. With emotions and ties in the way and morals and ethics, it would be near impossible to succeed in a mission.

But I had no choice but to kill her. I'd been given the deadline of a month. It wasn't as though they distrusted me, far, far from that. It was ample time, however, according to them at least, to spy in case she had any secret agendas or plans.

The file folder fell from the train seat when I bent down to tie my shoelace. The photo slipped out of the folder and I was confronted with the face of blinding purity. She was… To put it in a single word, beautiful, though I would never admit it. She was, after all, a target first, before a woman.

How the hell am I supposed to kill her? This photo, this woman, was already giving me a headache and I hadn't even met her.

But damn. There was innocence in her face. Hope in her shining eyes.

_Mikan_, her name in file said.. _Mikan Sakura_.

I managed to pull my eyes away from the photo. It held the draw of a magnet. If it was difficult to pull away from a photo, how much more if I met her?

I arrived in her hometown just before noon. I bought a bottle of water on the way, when I found her.

She looked every bit as magnificent as her photo. Except her hair was down, and it suited her better.

Her back was turned from me. Arguing. With the ex-girlfriend of my best friend that made his life hell- Hotaru Imai. It was long ago in what seemed like an entirely separate world.

I was taking a sip of water when it happened, and I choked on it, coughing. Exposing me.

We'd met once, though If it was any other woman, she'd forget me, but she wasn't. She was too shrewd for her own good. At some point, I could swear that she had a little compartment where she placed all the names of people she knew and information about them, stashed away somewhere.

She saw me, and her eyes widened, before it narrowed to slits. Whatever she saw in me, she didn't like. She knew I was in a mission, and she didn't know what I was about to do. I suspected she didn't like anything that she couldn't calculate ahead of. It was only a matter of time before Ms. Pink and Fairies turned to follow the direction of her friend's gaze.

Her eyes blazed with curiosity, perhaps wondering if Hotaru Imai knew me. Then Imai approached me, and I waited, interested.

"Hyuuga. What could you be doing here?" she asked suspiciously.

"Camping," I replied with a smirk.

"You don't camp. Not with your _job_."

"Sure I do. I camp all the time."

"Well, camp out of our town."

I raised a brow and turned to my target. "Is everyone in this town this inhospitable?"

I flashed her a smile which she returned warmly. Something tugged at my heart. Would she be smiling even till the very last moment? When I betray her?

"If… If you're just camping around, you could stay at our place. There's only me and my grandfather."

She was trusting too? How had she ever lived up to this point in her life? I didn't realise it would be this easy. But the quicker the better.

"Mikan, he's dangerous," she warned my target.

"I retired. From that job," I lied smoothly.

"I didn't think they let retirees live." Well, I didn't think they did either.

But this was my job. I was supposed to lie, cheat, deceive, if that could get me to complete my mission. Yet I could live with that, knowing that I wouldn't be harming innocents. I suppose now that meant I had screwed up honor.

I merely shrugged. Her eyes seemed suspicious and had a look that told me 'I'll be watching'.

How my best friend got to date her, I never knew. Hotaru Imai was a scary woman.

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"You don't talk very much, do you?"

"I don't consider it necessary." We kept walking.

"You're always frowning."

I glared at her. "I am _not_."

Instead of distancing herself from me and running like hell, her lips curved upwards into a smile. Her innocence was terrifying. She didn't belong to this world. She should be running away like crazy, not _smiling_.

People think I'm an unfriendly guy. That's because I send signals to people whenever we talk. Deadly signals. Signals that make people very, very afraid. I'm one of the lucky people who could communicate intention with a single stare, and I'm proud of it.

There was something wrong with Ms. FairyTale. Something to do with her head. She doesn't seem to be receiving those signals I'm sending. Maybe her Nullification Alice blocks those signals too. I'm not a friend. I'm a stranger. A stranger her friend warned her about.

"There it is!" she said brightly. To my surprise, she pulled my hand with hers. Her hand was warm, her skin was soft. Her hand in mine felt right.

Bloody. Hell.

What was I doing? I wasn't allowed to feel things for a target. Not even an ounce of compassion. I was going to kill her. Her murder would be on my hands, etched into my memory. Pure and innocent, gentle and beautiful. She had the smile of an angel.

She led me into their living room. Her grandfather was sleeping on the couch to my left. It was a small place. Not much furniture, aside from the basics. Television, radio, couch, cabinets, and maybe a vase or two. And I could smell something burning.

She seemed to realise that as well. "Waaa! My cookies!" She finally let go of my hand, and it felt cold. Empty. Like the person I was. I entered the kitchen and stared.

"You left the oven on?" I snorted incredulously.

She was baking something. And she left the house, leaving it open. How could someone be so careless?

Again, I wondered how she ever lived up to now. She was lucky we arrived before anything major happened.

"Hotaru called me, to talk. I… I forgot."

_Forgot_? I could hardly count the number of lives were lost from 'I forgot'. "What's so important that you 'forgot'?"

"Don't worry, I won't be burning the house while you're here," she joked lightly. "Hotaru's news just depressed me. It seemed that the competition just got canceled."

"Competition?"

She looked deflated at the mention of the topic. "A… running marathon. And I was looking forward to the prize money. It's not fair! It's the same as last year," she told me despairingly and gave a sigh.

She was like an open book. When she was happy, it was obvious, because she wore a stupid grin. When she was sad or upset, like the expression she wore now, it showed. In fact, if not for the file, I wouldn't have guessed that she even possessed an Alice.

She was… human. More human than anyone powerful I knew. She desired simple things. Could I take them away from her?

I had to_ kill _her. I'd get close to her, and then I'd kill her. Or maybe I'd just kill her now. I wouldn't burn her, no, that would be too painful. She deserved a peaceful death. A painless one.

It was the first time I've felt any compassion towards anyone I had to kill. It was astounding that I would feel so fiercely protective of a woman I haven't even known for long. It was her ignorance, of course. She seemed so defenseless, I pitied her for her fate. Yes, that must be it.

She was about to throw it away, when curiously, I reached for one cookie and gave a bite. Her eyes widened and she gasped.

"No, don't- that's burnt," she said, panicking, trying to snatch the cookie, but it was too late, because I finished it. It tasted… Well, good. I haven't ate any home-made things in a long time. I flashed her a grin.

I'd let her live… for awhile. If only so she could bake me another tray.

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**Soooo... The plot of this story has been sitting in my head for the longest time. And i****t's the longest thing I've written in awhile. I kinda like it. I've written the same main plot in a fic before, but I was stuck. When I wrote this, everything seemed to flow.**

**-.- Let me know what you all think.**


	2. Partner

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Gakuen Alice.

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Chapter 2: PARTNER

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It was official:

Mikan Sakura was going to die before I'd even begin plotting to kill her.

If I was lucky, I'd be able to save myself the trouble by doing nothing at all. The woman spelt disaster. Of all sorts.

Yesterday, she tripped on slippers lying in the doorway while on the way to hang the laundry. Why did she even leave them in the doorstep?

Then she cut her finger on a knife while she was chopping some onions this morning, and that was while her eyes were watery and I thought she'd been crying. And when we ate lunch…

She ate too quickly and too fast I swear she'd choke if she didn't slow down.

But… She was… interesting. She was caring towards her grandfather, who was apparently sick. And for some reason, she would always try to start a conversation with me. She was a curious person. She asked me many questions, but I did my best to omit the important details. I was surprised when she told me more than I did tell her.

And like I assumed, she also loved pink. I hated pink. It was ironic that I was forced into a mission with a woman who loved the color, it was even the color of her_ bathroom soap_. Not that I examined it or anything. I mean, it was staring me in the face.

She also went out with Imai today, and I observed for awhile, but it didn't like she did anything suspicious. Using the time she was gone, I decided it was time to report to the HQ, our headquarters. I dialed our regular number. I didn't have to wait long.

"Andou," came Tsubasa Andou's voice through the earpiece.

"It's Natsume."

"You were scheduled to report last night," he said, demanding an explanation.

"Didn't get a chance to. The walls here are paper thin and my room is right next to her."

There was momentary silence along the line. It didn't take a genius to know what he was probably thinking. "Did you…You know?"

I didn't like his suggestive tone. I wanted to throttle the bastard for even saying it.

"No," I said slowly, trying to calm my voice and not to picture strangling him, "I don't know."

"Guess you went straight for her house, huh. I thought you'd be staying somewhere close or som-"

"Leave. Me. The fuck. Alone. I do the mission, I make my own decisions," I growled. One of these days I might just end up killing _him_.

"Hey, no need to get so furious. So report. Wait a sec, lemme open the prog-"

I didn't wait for him. He had always complained the word processor loads slow.

"She has the Stealing Alice. As far as I know, she has only used it twice."

"Oh. Shit."

"Exactly," I said through gritted teeth. Persona wasn't going to like this, not anymore than Luna. That meant my mission would be high on their priority. As if it wasn't already pressure enough as it was. "She said she used it accidentally before, that's how she knew." My mind was still focused on that bit of information- she told me that with a gloomy look. I remembered that look. Something tugged at me. It wasn't her fault. It wasn't her fault that she had the goddamn Stealing Alice or the Nullification Alice. If only someone thought Luna common sense, I wouldn't be where I was today. Resentment grew within me.

Breaking my train of thought, he cleared his throat before he asked, "Have you confirmed her single status? Her photo-"

I ended the call, and chucked it at the bed. I could do just fine without the womanizer trying to squeeze information from me about my target. It was ridiculous that I wanted to protect her from _him_, when it was_ me _who was going to kill her.

I'd have to kill her soon. Sooner than I'd expected. The truth hit me even more when she returned, her bright smile lifting all the heavy pieces in my heart, the corners and spots no one ever touched. She worked her way in, slowly. She was worse than Hotaru Imai, because I realised for the first time in my life, this woman had the power to break me.

She baked me a fresh new batch of cookies today while the television was on at a random channel. Something with cartoons, I think.

"Do _you_ have an Alice?" she asked me when I bit into a cookie. I was taken aback by the sudden question, and it took me some time before I replied.

"Fire," I told her. If she only knew what I could do. Things I did.

When she didn't say anything for some time, I looked at her. She was battling with something in her mind, I could see it in her eyes. "You've killed, haven't you? In your missions? Hotaru told me a little about it. She didn't say much even when I kept asking. Why… Why do you do it?"

She could've asked me many other questions. She could ask me about me more about my Alice type, or asked me some stupid, pointless question, and I'd give a brief response, or maybe nothing at all.

But this question I couldn't answer. It was too risky, and anything that laid my weaknesses bare, anything that highlighted my vulnerabilities was simply unacceptable. I needed to be the cold and hard. I needed to be distant. That's what I was known for. That's what I've always been like.

When I looked at her one more time, I understood. I could still see the glimmer of hope and sunshine that was always present in her eyes. She believed me to be good. If I was right, she believed _everyone_ to be good. More reason why I believe she'd be dead even if we've never met. —But I'm not good. I've killed many. Nothing like innocent Ms. Fairy Tale here, but killing was killing. I never make excuses for myself. Never try to make myself good, justify my actions. I was not the hero. I was merely the right person at the right time. How many had been grieving? I must've grown numb to the pain, because I've been to many funerals, seen many graves, witnessed many burials. Seventeen and already constantly in battle.

I did it all for my sister. So Persona won't harm her. Everyday, I come back to the Headquarters, bloody and beaten. On my first mission, I almost came back dead. I never refused a mission, and as far as I know, I did almost the half the mission around there. It made me stronger. Steel. But I'd never tell her that. Like I said, no excuses. I do what I do, and I damned well better be rewarded for it. One day, as I told Ruka, I'd escape. But I'd kill Persona first before I left with my sister. He was a constant cage, and damn if Luna didn't just add extra locks for security.

And yet she sat there, all the while, staring at me. For some reason, her trusting nature brought a spark of irritation in me. It made me strive to drive her away from me.

Then, I answered, "Because it's what I'm good at." That much was true. Not the full reason, allowing her to see my ruthless side. The me everyone else knew.

"But that's not why you do it," she said softly. She touched my arm lightly, and looked at me with those drowning eyes. There it was again. That trust. Her total faith in the good side of me. It enraged me even more.

"Don't look at me like that," I growled.

She pulled her hand back, looking slightly hurt, but her eyes... They were a beautiful brown. Unwavering. The only constant I knew that could make the corners of my lips curve upwards.

"You're… Not an evil person, Natsume."

I mustered an icy glare at the mention of my first name as I tried to harden myself. First name implied a closeness that wasn't supposed to exist. "You don't know a thing about me, Sakura. Don't pretend you do. You don't. No one does. " And it damned well better stay that way.

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When I saw who greeted me this morning, I almost thought the gods were mocking me. In fact, I think I could already here their cackle, resounding through the thin walls of Mikan Sakura's home.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

There Kokoro Yome stood mere metres apart from me, his trademark goofy grin plastered on his face, behind Mikan, carrying what looked like what I hoped it wasn't; bags and baggages. There'd better be a reason for this.

"Another happy camper," she chirped. I cursed under my breath.

"Hello to you too, _partner_," Koko grinned, offering a hand to shake.

I narrowed my eyes infinitesimally. "There was no need. Things were under my control."

Slowly, I took his hand, but rather than shake it, I pulled him towards the direction of my room as I walked and briefly told Mikan "We were… old partners. We have things to discuss."

I then shut the door and folded my arms across my chest.

"You told her you were _camping_?" I said disbelievingly.

Koko scratched his nose absent-mindedly as he shifted to a comfortable position. "That was the first thing that came to mind. I don't see the problem."

"I told her_ I_ was camping Two people don't just randomly camp at the same area," I pointed out.

Understanding, Koko frowned, and then as if he settled the matter in his head, shrugged. "Two people could. Incidents happen."

I rolled my eyes. Yeah, it was just like him to be so carefree. "Back to the mission at hand: I could handle it perfectly fine."

"Ruka didn't seem to think so. Said you could back out anytime, and I'll take care of it."

Right. Just what I needed. A partner.

"'Sides, didn't have to do much. Seems your target went HP. They moved the deadline to a fortnight after they learned she has the Stealing Alice."

High Priority. Double damn. But then, I had news for Ruka too.

"Well, tell him that his ex-girlfriend terror that bombed the HQ is best friends with my target. See what he makes of that."

"That was _her_?" he said after a low whistle. "Best friend of the Nullifier, too," he mumbled.

"Exactly," I said with a nod, for there was no other word for it.

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She looked immensely rattled. Not that I could blame her.

Every now and then, she would twine and untwine her fingers. She would play a bit with her food. After awhile, she dropped her fork, and it hit the plate with a loud clatter.

"Did I do anything wrong?" she snapped. I looked up, surprised. No one had ever used that kind of tone on me. Not if they didn't want to risk getting burned. To think that she already knew my Alice and still look at me straight in the face as though it was nothing. I think it made me smile. Ms. Pink and Fairies had some backbone.

"No," I answered truthfully, now fully looking at her. I've been avoiding her in the house, until I had no choice but to come to dinner. Even then, I refused to look at her. The woman did strange things to me. She made my gut clench when I look at her. It made me guilty, to think that I would have to kill her.

She seemed to consider my answer as a challenge.

"Natsume-"

It was then that Koko choked. Or pretended to, at least. I clapped him hard at the back and handed him a glass of water to my left. When he looked at me, it was a questioning look. _Since when did you two get so close_? his look said. I ignored it. I didn't know the answer to that myself. In my mind, I've already thought of her as _Mikan_. It was disturbing to not understand your own feelings.

"- I- I don't understand..."

Yes, I don't understand it at all. It made me want to push her away.

"I think you're annoying."

_I think you're amazing._

"Oh!" Her cheeks were slightly tinged with pink.

"And unbelievably clumsy."

_And gentle, and compassionate..._

Her eyebrows furrowed and she exclaimed, "I'm sorry if I'm the one who always start our conversations, because the only time you ever talk is when I ask something."

Ouch. So I wasn't exactly Mr. Social.

She looked about to cry. Koko, on the other hand, was watching us both intently. The reality of the situation hit me.

"Koko, get out."

He grinned, and winked at me, and then he headed to our room. I rubbed my temples, reflecting on what had happened. Koko could read minds, something I've forgotten to take into account.

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I came back to my room in ten minutes and saw Koko opening a packet of biscuits on my bed. It didn't surprise me.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" I said, struggling to keep my cool. "And get the bloody hell away from my bed."

A slow smile reached his lips. "Possessive, much?"

I answered him with an icy glare.

Muttering a few unintelligible words, he moved towards a leather seat just near the bed. "Natsume, buddy, I know we haven't worked together for quite some time, but I didn't realise how much you've changed your style."

I raised a brow. "You've got a problem with the way I work?"

Koko looked away. "Mere advice from a friend… Getting all close with your target is just looking for trouble. And I thought detachment was your specialty."

It was. Until her. Until she baked me those damn half-burnt cookies and treated me like we were _best friends_. But there was no use explaining inconsequential feelings. They were distractions. Obstacles. I needed to get my priorities straight. I needed to start to do something, because the longer I stay here with her, the closer I'd be to going insane. The bloody woman was disaster. And it wasn't just to her and the people around her- she was a disaster to _me._

"We're having a strategy meeting tomorrow," I finally decided. The sooner I completed this mission, the better. Or perhaps, worse.

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**Sorry it took so long. I've really planned on finishing this chapter early, but I've had few issues with this chapter, and was a little indecisive about posting it. And shool just grilled me last week... But I'm done. And thanks for the reviews so far guys- much appreciated. ^^ **


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